Xoco Wicker Park opens Aug. 12

Rick Bayless welcomes guests to his original River North Xoco in 2009. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Rick Bayless welcomes guests to his original River North Xoco in 2009. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Kevin PangTribune reporter

Rick Bayless was in the middle of another 12-hour rehearsal for Cascabel Thursday, the remount of his Lookingglass Theatre show, when he finally got the text he’s been waiting for: Xoco Wicker Park (1471 N. Milwaukee Ave.) had passed final inspections.

"This opening has been so incredibly delayed," Bayless said. "We thought it’d be May 1 at the latest. But the building was a mess. We completely dug out the basement, had to rebuild the first floor and the sewage system was about to collapse. We even had to reinforce the concrete box."

What was the old Salud restaurant will re-open as Xoco on Aug. 12. It will have the same menu as the original Xoco in River North, with a few added snacks (ceviche tostada, queso fundido) and 20 local microbrews on tap. The biggest difference, though, is that Xoco Wicker Park isn’t counter service but a full-service sit-down restaurant. And unlike the River North location, the Wicker Park restaurant will be open on Sundays (but closed on Monday).

"One of the things I'm striving to do is to offer an alternative. There's so many bars, and it’s a neighborhood filled with a lot of young families," said Bayless, who lives five blocks from the new Xoco. "It's not going to be another Big Star. We're going to be a food-oriented place, not a booze-oriented place. We’ll be doing craft beers, a few wines and a margaritas, but you can’t do tequila shots here."

After Xoco Wicker Park, Bayless will now focus on his new West Loop venture on Randolph Street. That concept hasn't been fully formed, although he hinted it will involve "flavors of smoke, lots of wood grilling" and it won't be a barbecue restaurant.